15 positive observations from the weekend of football, seven not so positive observations and we acknowledge a “zero” from outside the world of football. A reminder, there’s never any Ravens game analysis here. We do plenty of that elsewhere. It’s a trip through the weekend of football via videos, GIFs, memes, pictures, links, Tweets and shtick. This isn’t where we do Ravens stuff. You can find plenty of that…like…everywhere else on the site.

The 15-7-0 is happy to congratulate Jimmie Johnson on his 6th NASCAR title. I say that as a fellow six time NASCAR champ myself. What’s that, you don’t believe me? Then prove me wrong. Name ONE other NASCAR champion besides Jimmie Johnson.

Following every Baltimore Ravens game this season, Ryan Chell and I will take to the airwaves Tuesdays on “The Reality Check” on AM1570 WNST.net with a segment known as “The Five Plays That Determined The Game.”

It’s a simple concept. We’ll select five plays from each game that determined the outcome. These five plays will best represent why the Ravens won or lost each game.

This will be our final analysis of the previous game before switching gears towards the next game on the schedule.

Here are the five plays that determined the Ravens’ 24-18 loss to the Cleveland Browns Sunday at FirstEnergy Stadium…

(Note: not all pictures are always of actual play)

Glenn Clark’s Plays…

5. Jason Campbell 12 yard run on 3rd & 3 (4th quarter)

The first good opportunity the Ravens had to end the Browns’ final drive.

Coming off the Week 8 bye was supposed to be a chance for the Ravens to start anew after a rocky 3-4 start to the 2013 season.

With the division-leading Cincinnati Bengals losing on Thursday night and most of the AFC wild-card contenders looking mortal, the Ravens simply needed a win — no matter how it looked — to get back to .500 and begin the second half of the season on a positive note. A week off not only gave players a chance to rest but provided head coach John Harbaugh and his staff the time to make much-needed corrections in all phases of the game.

Instead, the Ravens responded with an ugly 24-18 loss to the Cleveland Browns, snapping an 11-game winning streak over their AFC North foe and digging an even bigger hole in their quest to advance to the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season. Expecting the bye week to provide a much-needed tuneup, the Ravens instead stalled getting out of their driveway as they’re now off to their worst start since the 2005 season.

And the question echoing over and over in the closing seconds as the Browns finished a scoring drive lasting more than six minutes was a frightening one.

What now?

A running game averaging a league-worst 2.8 yards per carry entering Sunday produced only 55 yards on 21 carries with quarterback Joe Flacco accounting for 25 of those on three scrambles. The offensive line was once again dominated at the point of attack and Ray Rice finished with 17 yards on 11 carries, not looking any more explosive or elusive despite claims that he was once again 100 percent.

Though once again plagued with a running game that was a non-factor and suspect pass protection for much of the day, Flacco played poorly through much of the first half, missing several open receivers and throwing a head-scratching interception late in the second quarter. To his credit, the sixth-year signal caller rebounded over the game’s final 30 minutes, but his poor first-half showing was disappointing coming off the bye and was a major factor in the Ravens offense once again getting off to a slow start.

The defense allowed veteran Jason Campbell to throw for 262 yards and three touchdowns and, even worse, wasn’t able to get a stop at a crucial point in the second half for the third straight game — all losses. Dean Pees’ unit hasn’t been the biggest problem this season, but the Ravens defense simply hasn’t been able to come up with a big play when it needs it late in games unlike stellar units of the past that often carried inferior offenses.

Not to be outdone by the first two phases, the special teams were a major problem as well as normally sure-handed punt returner Tandon Doss muffed a punt at his own 11-yard line, setting up the Browns’ third touchdown of the game in the third quarter and putting the Ravens behind 21-10. And punter Sam Koch continued his rough season, failing to pin the Browns inside the 20 on three separate opportunities kicking inside Cleveland territory in a game in which field position loomed large.

Hoping for the light to come on after the bye, the Ravens looked like they did in the first seven games of the season — appearing to be a below-average football team.

How does it get fixed? Can it be fixed this season?

The Ravens are as healthy as they’re going to be until the expected return of Dennis Pitta later this month, but the talented tight end isn’t going to remedy all of the team’s problems. At this rate, the Ravens may not be in a position for Pitta’s return to matter in terms of their playoff hopes for 2013.

General manager Ozzie Newsome and Harbaugh have already trimmed fat on the roster with the jettisoning of veterans Michael Huff, Marcus Spears, and Bryant McKinnie. Many are clamoring for the ax to fall on run-game coordinator Juan Castillo, but there have already been murmurs that his influence has waned since the bye week with offensive line coach Andy Moeller now having a louder voice.

If Castillo were to be fired — a move that would be very difficult to challenge at this point — do the likes of Marshal Yanda and Michael Oher suddenly start winning one-on-one battles that they’ve lost too often this season?

The answers aren’t simple when you have issues all over the place and that’s where the Ravens find themselves as they began the month of November with their third loss in the last four games. There’s a certain amount of understanding that comes with the struggles of unproven players like Gino Gradkowski and veteran newcomers who simply don’t fit, but a number of veterans who have been counted on year in and year out have been even bigger disappointments, which brings greater concern for the future.

Even with the problems along the offensive line, it’s getting more difficult every week to dispute the growing notion that Rice’s best days are behind him. He continues to struggle to break any tackles in the open field and no longer looks like the home-run hitter on which the Ravens relied for years. Rice has three years remaining on his current contract and is scheduled to account for $8.75 million on next year’s cap.

Oher and Yanda have appeared to be shells of their former selves, which might not be as problematic with the former scheduled to become a free agent, but the Pro Bowl right guard has a cap figure of $8.45 million next year and is under contract through the 2015 season.

Top cornerback Lardarius Webb was faked out of his shoes by Browns receiver Davone Bess on a 20-yard touchdown in the second quarter Sunday and has struggled to find his pre-injury form coming back from ACL surgery, but he certainly deserves some benefit of the doubt and should get stronger in the second half of the season. Still, he carries a $10.5 million cap figure in 2014 and is being paid as one of the best cornerbacks in the league.

Having arguably the worst season of his career, Koch carries a $2.8 million cap figure next year, which is a high number for a punter not getting the job done.

And perhaps the most disappointing and concerning of the group of standouts failing to deliver in 2013 is defensive tackle Haloti Ngata, who holds a $16 million cap number next season and no longer looks like the game-wrecker he was before the Ravens signed him to a five-year, $61 million contract in 2011. For the third straight season, nagging injuries are limiting his impact in games.

Regardless of what happens over the final eight games in terms of the Ravens trying to rebound to extend their run of five consecutive playoff appearances to a sixth, Newsome and Harbaugh must be in evaluation mode when it comes to the aforementioned players. Some contracts have bigger cap ramifications than others, but it’s a scary proposition to be forced to reconsider your thinking on players who previously weren’t of any concern — and carry huge price tags.

The debate went on through much of the offseason whether the Ravens were rebuilding or simply reloading after a slew of personnel changes. The result to this point has been a flawed roster that will need to go 6-2 in the second half of the season just to give the Ravens a chance at 9-7.

And barring a drastic turnaround in the final eight games, the Ravens will be forced to start thinking about their offseason much sooner than anyone anticipated.

After Baltimore Ravens victories, Ryan Chell and I award players who made positive contributions with “Pats on the Ass” during the Creative Deck Designs Postgame Show on AM1570 WNST.net.

The Ravens fell to the Cleveland Browns 24-18 Sunday at FirstEnergy Stadium, meaning there were no Pats to be awarded.

So instead of offering “Pats on the Ass”, Ryan and I offered “Slaps to the Head” postgame. A slap on the side of the head from a coach tends to come along with them saying something along the lines of “you’ve gotta do better than that.”

Same rules as there were with Pats. Two offensive players, two defensive players, and a Wild Card (Special Teams player, coach, or another Offensive or Defensive player). One player gets “two slaps” (or a slap on both sides of the head), it’s the opposite of a “Player of the Game” honor.” Ryan and I select five different players/coaches after each game.

Hoping to get the post-bye portion of their schedule off on a positive note, the Ravens travel to Cleveland to take on the Browns for the 30th time in franchise history.

Baltimore hopes to improve upon a disappointing 3-4 start while debuting a new look on the offensive line following Friday’s news that left guard Kelechi Osemele is expected to miss the rest of the season with a back injury. Backup center A.Q. Shipley will start in his place and receive the first opportunity to hold down the job with the likes of Jah Reid and Ryan Jensen potentially in the mix moving forward.

Reid is active for only his second game this season and for the first time since Week 3 and will serve as the primary backup guard while the rookie Jensen is inactive for Sunday’s game.

Reserve defensive tackle Terrence Cody is also active for the first time since injuring his knee in Week 3 against the Houston Texans. His return along with the emergence of rookie Brandon Williams prompted the Ravens to part ways with veteran Marcus Spears earlier this week.

Linebacker Josh Bynes is active after he missed his first game of the season in Pittsburgh two weeks ago due to undergoing finger surgery, but he will mostly serve on special teams as veteran Jameel McClain regained his starting job at weakside inside linebacker in Week 7.

After being listed as questionable and practicing on a limited basis all week, veteran wide receiver Brandon Stokley is inactive for the third straight game as he continues to manage a groin injury he’s dealt with since the end of September.

Newly-signed No.3 running back Bernard Scott is listed as inactive as he’s still in the process of getting acclimated to the Baltimore offensive system.

The Ravens will be meeting a Browns offense looking different from the group we saw in Baltimore in Week 2 as veteran Jason Campbell will receive his second straight start behind center and big-play wide receiver Josh Gordon is available after serving a two-game suspension to begin the 2013 season. The Browns also feature former Raven Willis McGahee at running back, but, much like the Ravens, Cleveland has been unable to get its running game going all season.

Campbell will be making his second career start against the Ravens and replaced Brandon Weeden in the fourth quarter of the Baltimore’s Week 2 win over Cleveland. That lone start came in 2008 when Campbell threw for 218 yards, a touchdown, and two interceptions in a 24-10 win for Baltimore in a win over Washington.

Baltimore will be trying to extend its winning streak to 12 straight over the Cleveland Browns while also improving to 6-0 coming off the bye week in the John Harbaugh era. The Ravens are 10-4 all-time in Cleveland and lead the regular-season series by a 22-7 margin since 1999.

The Ravens will be wearing white jerseys with black pants while Cleveland dons brown jerseys with white pants on Sunday afternoon.

Scott Green will be the referee for Sunday’s game in Cleveland. Forecasts are calling for mostly sunny skies with temperatures in the mid-40s and winds up to nine miles per hour.

The Ravens haven’t lost to the Cleveland Browns since the George W. Bush administration and will try to continue that trend at FirstEnergy Stadium on Sunday in the 30th all-time meeting between these teams.

In dumping veterans Bryant McKinnie, Marcus Spears, and Michael Huff, coach John Harbaugh hopes his team will respond positively after an underwhelming 3-4 start that’s put the Ravens below the .500 mark this late in a season for the first time since 2007. Baltimore is 5-0 coming off its bye week in the Harbaugh era and plays Cleveland following an off-week for the second straight season.

Losers of three straight, the Browns look much different offensively as veteran Jason Campbell is now the starting quarterback and former Raven Willis McGahee has replaced 2012 first-round pick Trent Richardson, who was traded to Indianapolis after Cleveland’s Week 2 loss to the Ravens. Unlike that game in Baltimore, explosive wide receiver Josh Gordon will be available to challenge the Ravens secondary and has caught 32 passes for 582 yards and three touchdowns in six games this season.

It’s time to go on the record as the Ravens lead the all-time series by an overwhelming 22-7 margin and are 10-4 in Cleveland. Despite Baltimore’s current 11-game winning streak over the Browns, three of the last four contests have been decided by eight points or less.

Here’s what to expect as the Ravens try to climb back to the .500 mark and improve their all-time record coming off a bye week to 13-5 …

1. A new and undersized left guard isn’t going to help jump-start the Ravens running game after the bye. It’s true that Kelechi Osemele wasn’t playing at a high level, but news of him likely undergoing season-ending back surgery is bad for the rest of the season. A.Q. Shipley is giving up four inches and over 20 pounds compared to Osemele, leaving the Ravens undersized at both center and left guard. There have been whispers of Juan Castillo’s influence waning and Andy Moeller being given a bigger voice in coaching the offensive line, so it will be interesting to see how the unit looks against one of the league’s better defenses. Ray Rice and Bernard Pierce appear to be healthy, but Browns nose tackle Phil Taylor will be a handful for the interior line and the front seven will keep the Ravens under 85 rushing yards for the sixth time in eight games this year.

2. With more responsibility on Joe Flacco’s shoulders, the quarterback will throw for two touchdowns and go over 275 yards. The increased use of the no-huddle offense and three wide receivers in Pittsburgh was likely a preview of what we’ll see more frequently in the second half of the year as the Ravens can’t count on the running game to suddenly make drastic improvements after averaging a league-worst 2.8 yards per carry. The bye week allowed offensive coordinator Jim Caldwell to devise creative ways to get the ball to Torrey Smith while also utilizing the skills of Jacoby Jones, Tandon Doss, and Marlon Brown. Cleveland has struggled lately against the pass and the Ravens need Flacco to step up his performance in the second half despite several factors working against him. He’ll come through with solid but unspectacular pass protection in front of him.

3. Browns tight end Jordan Cameron will catch a touchdown pass to follow up a strong performance against the Ravens in Week 2. Baltimore didn’t have to face Gordon in Week 2 and will need to watch him closely as a deep threat, but Cameron is the more dangerous target in the red zone and had 95 receiving yards against the Ravens earlier this season. The 6-foot-5 receiver will be a difficult matchup regardless of whether a linebacker or a safety attempts to cover him, and I expect defensive coordinator Dean Pees to throw as many different coverage looks as he can at Campbell. The Browns haven’t been able to run the football all season and that won’t change on Sunday, putting the ball in Campbell’s hands and the veteran will lean on his stud tight end for much of the afternoon.

4. With Terrell Suggs locked up with Pro Bowl tackle Joe Thomas all day, Elvis Dumervil will star for the Ravens’ pass rush with two sacks. In Week 2, Suggs had a strong performance against Thomas, but he won’t have as much success this time around. However, Dumervil will draw frequent matchups against right tackle Mitchell Schwartz, who isn’t nearly as accomplished and struggled throughout the Week 2 game. The Browns have given up 28 sacks this season while the Ravens have collected 25 in seven games. The Baltimore defense hasn’t been very dynamic in terms of creating turnovers and setting the offense up on a short field, but it has pressured quarterbacks throughout the season. Campbell was impressive in throwing for 293 yards and two touchdowns against a very tough Kansas City defense in a losing effort last week, but lighting won’t strike twice.

5. Superior efficiency in the red zone will be the difference as the Ravens find a way to win their 12th straight over Cleveland in a 20-16 final. Much like the last handful of games between these teams, scoring opportunities will be at a premium as both offenses have faced their challenges all season. The defenses are the main strengths of each team, but the Ravens rank first in red-zone defense (allowing touchdowns on 26.3 percent of red-zone trips) while the Browns rank only 30th (65.2 percent). In a close, low-scoring game that could come down to the final possession or two, the Ravens will make the big play they need while Cleveland will come up short as they have so many times in the Harbaugh era despite Baltimore appearing as vulnerable as ever for a loss to the AFC North foe on Sunday.

OWINGS MILLS, Md. — Ravens left guard Kelechi Osemele discussed his chronic back problem at length prior to the bye week and it appears his 2013 season is now over.

Coach John Harbaugh announced after Friday’s practice that the second-year offensive linemen would not play against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday and will likely undergo season-ending back surgery to have a disc problem corrected. Osemele’s back appeared to have worsened earlier in the week and his chances of playing the rest of the year are remote, according to the head coach.

Before officially being ruled out on Friday afternoon, Osemele had made 23 straight starts and hadn’t missed a game in his young career.

“There are some changes in his back that we discovered this week,” Harbaugh said. “He’s not going to play in this game. Going forward, I think the chances of him playing the rest of the year probably are pretty slim. There’s a good chance he’s going to get surgery here real soon. The back was just getting a little worse and a little worse as we went. We went back in and looked at it, and there’s some things that need to get taken care of there.”

Osemele practiced on a limited basis on Wednesday before being sidelined on Thursday, raising red flags regarding the status of his back. The 2012 second-round pick told reporters during the bye week that he’s dealt with the back injury since his rookie year and it had gotten worse this season, acknowledging that he would need to have surgery.

Backup center A.Q. Shipley will start at left guard against the Browns and replaced Osemele when back spasms sidelined him against the Miami Dolphins on Oct. 6. Harbaugh said 2011 third-round pick Jah Reid and rookie Rick Wagner will also be in the mix at the position.

“He’s played very well when he’s been in there,” Harbaugh said. “He’s a football player. He’s always played well whenever he plays. And there are other guys that will be in the mix. The offensive line is developing very well, and I’m excited to see how they play going forward. We’ll actually be better, I think, with a healthier player.”

Listed at 6-foot-1 and 309 pounds, Shipley is four inches shorter and 21 pounds lighter than Osemele, giving the Ravens undersized players at both the center and left guard positions. Shipley began practicing more extensively at left guard following Osemele’s spasms in Miami and expressed confidence that he will be able to handle a new position.

Shipley has never started an NFL game at left guard and he made five starts at center for the Indianapolis Colts last season before he was dealt to the Ravens this offseason for a conditional seventh-round pick.

“I’ve been ready. I’ve been preparing as a starter for something like this,” Shipley said. “That’s the nature of this business, so it’s ‘next man up.’ [Guard] is a little easier in terms of the mental aspect. I just have to listen to the center now. It’s very similar to center; I’ve just got a little more space to deal with now.”

Meanwhile, Reid has been inactive for all but one game this season, but the third-year lineman has more experience at the position. After former Ravens Ramon Harewood and Bobbie Williams were given opportunities at left guard, Reid started seven games before a toe injury ended his 2012 season and paved the way for Osemele to move from right tackle to left guard for the postseason.

Other than Osemele, the Ravens appear to be in good shape from a health standpoint as all other members of the 53-man roster were present and working during Friday’s practice.

Veteran wide receiver Brandon Stokley (groin) is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game and practiced on a limited basis all week. Five others were listed as probable, including right tackle Michael Oher (ankle) and linebacker Josh Bynes (finger).

For the Browns, starting running back Willis McGahee (knee) was a full participant on Friday and is listed as probable to play against his former team.

Scott Green will be the referee for Sunday’s game in Cleveland. Forecasts are calling for temperatures in the mid-40s with a 30 percent chance of rain but most of the precipitation coming in the morning.